How Does Smoking Affect Eye Health?
When visiting your eye doctor for a routine eye exam, you may be asked about your lifestyle and daily habits, particularly when it comes to tobacco usage. This is because smoking is associated with a multitude of vision problems. Here are a few ways smoking can affect your general eye health to further inspire ditching the vice.
3 Ways Tobacco Impacts Your Vision
1. Macular Degeneration
Macular degeneration is an incurable eye disease which results in blurred vision or vision loss due to the deterioration of the center of the retina. This eye condition impacts more than 10 million Americans, and while this disease is primarily age-related, studies have found smoking is the second-highest risk factor.
2. Cataracts
Cataracts are defined by the clouding of your eye’s natural lens, which results in cloudy vision and eventually blindness. Approximately 24 million Americans over the age of 40 are impacted by this eye problem. Evidence shows that smokers are three times as likely to develop nuclear cataracts, or clouding that originates in the center of the eye.
3. Optic Nerve Damage
When you smoke cigarettes, blood flow throughout your body decreases, including within your eyes. This can cause optic nerve damage or optic neuropathy, where the nerve deteriorates and you experience a decreased field of vision or vision loss. To maintain optic nerve health and promote healthy vision, eliminating smoking and tobacco usage is strongly recommended.
If you’re based in Anchorage, AK, and looking for a dedicated eye doctor who can help you evaluate your daily habits and lifestyle choices to ensure you maintain healthy vision through every life stage, Northern Lights Eye Care is right for you. Since opening 19 years ago, this full-service, state-of-the-art vision center has helped patients of all ages maintain eye health, whether you need new glasses or treatment for glaucoma or macular degeneration. Call today at (907) 276-3937 to schedule your first eye exam, and visit this practice online to learn more about their staff and facilities.
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